Two 12-year-old boys were arrested and charged with arson, accused of starting the first two fires. The cause of a third fire is still under investigation.

City officials said some of the costs will be recouped through insurance, but the costs fire-related expenses will definitely strain the local government's budget.

"We poured something in the order of about 7 million gallons of water on these three structure fires in downtown Lewiston," said Phil Nadeau, deputy city administrator. "The cost for the water is something in the area of about $35,000 for that water -- that's at cost."

That cost is one of many expenses associated with the three fires that hit Lewiston within one week. The city's fire chief said his 68 firefighters racked up $45,000 in overtime, and the beefed up police crews needed to enforce a nighttime curfew has added another $10,000 to the costs.

With more than two dozen towns responding for mutual aid, several fire trucks needed to be fueled, and Nadeua said that wasn't cheap, logging in at $28,000.

"There's a cost, because you have to keep those trucks fueled," he said. "They are very hungry vehicles. The need fuel, and you can't just send them over to the closest gasoline station to gas up."

The burned out buildings have to be demolished and debris removed. And in this case, asbestos shingles, a hazardous material, needed to be trucked to a special facility in Old Town. Total demolition costs have already hit $200,000.

Also suffering fire-related expenses was the Trinity Jubilee Center, which operates a soup kitchen, food pantry and provides social services. Erin Reed, development director, said the agency's five employees have been working around the clock to assist fire victims.

"We'll make ends meet," Reed said. "This is why we are here. We are kind of a safety net, so when situations like this happen, that's when we step up. We're not gong to not help just because it's going to be expensive."

Timeline: Lewiston Fires

1 of 11

Monday afternoon: Fire breaks out in building on Blake Street. The fire spread to two other buildings.